FEW strikers have ever been as brave as Scottish lionheart Andy Gray, who enjoyed two spells at Villa Park at opposite ends of an illustrious playing career.

FEW strikers have ever been as brave as Scottish lionheart Andy Gray, who enjoyed two spells at Villa Park at opposite ends of an illustrious playing career.

In October 1975, he headed south from Dundee United for £110,000 and became an instant hit with of his all-action style.

Gray netted his first Villa goal against Spurs at Villa Park soon after arriving and ended that first season with 12 goals - 10 of which came in the league.

He collected the Golden Boot in 1976/77 with his tally of 25 league goals which took Villa up to the heady heights of fourth.

A 5-1 win over champions Liverpool, who would go on to retain their title and lift the European Cup, on December 15, 1976, will long live in supporters' memories.

Gray and John Deehan scored two goals apiece with Brian Little also getting on the scoresheet. The Liverpool fans applauded Gray off the pitch.

His 29 goals in all competitions, as he helped Villa win the League Cup, earned him the PFA Young Player of the Year and PFA Players' Player of the Year awards - an historic double not repeated until Cristiano Ronaldo won both for the 2006-07 season.

However, those accolades were not enough to convince Scotland manager Ally MacLeod to select him for the 1978 World Cup squad.

After one more season in 1977-78, when he scored another 13 league goals and 20 in all competitions, the striker made 15 league appearances at the start of 1978-79, scoring six goals, before he moved to Wolverhampton Wanderers in September 1979 for a then-British record £1.5million.

After a successful spell at Everton he returned to Villa six years later and would eventually become managerial assistant to Ron Atkinson.

Fascinating fact: Gray won both the Professional Footballers' Association Young Player and Players' Player of the Year awards in 1977 - the first person to do so. But he was at home in Birmingham. Ron Saunders had refused him permission to travel to the ceremony, insisting the journey might aggravate an injury he was carrying.

Villa Park highlight: Two superb hat-tricks were the highlight of an incredible 1976-77 season where the Scot hit 25 league goals, 29 in total. He hit three in a 5-2 victory over Ipswich in September 1976, and finished off the season with another treble in May 1977 in a 4-0 home win over Albion. You could also pick out his brace against Liverpool in a 5-1 thrashing in December 1976.